Steven A. Ballmer is Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft Corporation, the world's leading manufacturer of software for personal and business computing. Ballmer joined Microsoft in 1980 and was the first business manager hired by Bill Gates. Since then, Ballmer's leadership and passion have become hallmarks of his tenure at the company.

Ballmer was born in March 1956, and grew up near Detroit, where his father worked as a manager at Ford Motor Co. He graduated from Harvard University with a bachelor's degree in mathematics and economics. While in college, Ballmer managed the football team, worked on the Harvard Crimson newspaper as well as the university literary magazine, and lived down the hall from fellow sophomore Bill Gates. After college, he worked for two years at Procter & Gamble Co. as an assistant product manager and, before joining Microsoft, attended Stanford University's Graduate School of Business.

Steve Ballmer, Microsoft CEO, shares his optimism for emerging innovation in the midst of economic turmoil, and the story of his own entrepreneurial path. He also speaks of his company's continued investment in Internet-ready hardware and software that seeks progress in healthcare, education, and science.

Steve Ballmer, Microsoft CEO, shares his optimism for emerging innovation in the midst of economic turmoil, and the story of his own entrepreneurial path. He also speaks of his company's continued investment in Internet-ready hardware and software that seeks progress in healthcare, education, and science.

Critical screening, careful thought processes, and cash-conscience customers don't signal the end of the start-up, says Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. But they do indicate that only the best and most solid ideas will receive the funding and other resources to bring them to fruition. As we reflect upon the economic crisis of 2008/2009, Ballmer describes entrepreneurial opportunities as "less frothy", but indicates his optimism for great solutions coming to market.

Important ideas aren't born overnight, stresses Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. They can take up to a decade or more to truly come to light. Examples of projects worth the wait include Windows, SQL databases, and the Google search engine. Hard work, he promises, will lead a revolution in the end.

Have all of the great technology companies already been created? Not even close, insists Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's CEO. The only thing for certain in the future of technology is its dynamism, and that the names and the players are always changing. Ballmer points to smart displays and better human-computer interaction as future areas of exploration. He credits software with having impact on the future of energy, environmental science, and other fields.

Touch, voice, natural language input, smart hardware, and new platforms: Steve Ballmer, Microsoft CEO, outlines the company's $9 million path of product research for 2009. Overall, he states that the company is optimistic for what can be created in the future. In this clip, he talks about the company's strong need to create and innovate just like a start-up - despite the fact that they're one of the largest names in the industry.

More venture capital means more companies, but it does not necessarily mean more innovation, says Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft. And on that same token, the restrictions in financing that resulted from the financial crisis of 2008/2009 will not necessarily quash the future of innovation, either. Ballmer believes that the best ideas in technology - true next steps - will come to light despite even amidst the most inhospitable market conditions.

Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's CEO, considers the importance of balance and the tension between symbiotic and opposing forces in the enterprise. In this clip, he takes a philosophical perspective on company culture, including the interplay of far-reaching patience and meeting short-term goals, and teetering between a passion for technology and a passion for the customer.

Steve Ballmer had always envisioned himself to be a big company guy - but he never dreamed that he would have to grow the company from the ground up. In this amusing anecdote on the roots of Microsoft's salad days, the company CEO recalls how he he took on the business responsibilities at the fledgeling start-up. At Bill Gates' invitation, Ballmer took on a low-risk summer job, never dreaming that it would result in one of the largest industry players enduring for over three decades.

Despite Microsoft's size and market dominance, CEO Steve Ballmer considers himself to be a "mini venture capitalist" in a sea of bright ideas and new market possibilities. Working with the best and the brightest, his is the final word on tough decisions regarding which ideas and projects receive funding and other in-house resources from the company's limited pool. New products come and go with varying success, but by staying focused on core-competancies and core-strategies, says Ballmer, the right decisions will always come to light.

After just one year at Stanford's business school before joining Microsoft, Steve Ballmer reflects upon the knowledge and courses that were most valuable to him in the real world. He recalls that it came in handy to read a balance sheet and understand the basics of cost accounting. Courses of study that were particularly helpful include business policy and management of arts organizations, which, he says, is more akin to managing engineers and scientists than one would think. STVP's Tina Seelig also asks Ballmer to reflect upon what he wishes he'd learned. In retrospect, if he could retrace his steps in academia, his desire would be to take more computer science classes.